Defense Mechanism
by klutzysunshine
Summary: Spoilers and speculation for "Shadows" and "Heavy is the Head". Skye hides behind a mask of anger to deal with everything that's happened to her since Hydra rose.


**I don't own SHIELD and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

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Skye knows she's not handling all the shit that's raining down on them very well so she puts on a mask and hopes no one can see past it. She cannot afford to fall apart when so many people need her help; need her to be strong. Skye holds onto her anger because she needs it just to stay afloat and it works. Sooner or later, everything will collapse but she can't think about that now. Skye can't afford to do that because she has a job that takes priority over everything. Which is why she stares incredously at Coulson when he tells her his plan to go after all the organizations and people that are on their tails. "I'm sorry, AC, but are you fucking kidding me?"

"Skye, it's the worst best option we have. I know you don't like it and none of us should trust Ward but we need him," Coulson gently explains. He understands why she's so upset but they can't handle this on their own anymore. Ward is a traitor and hurt his team but he has information on Hydra cells they need, and it may end up a beneficial partnership. But he wants Skye on board for this because he needs to send her in to get him to comply.

She glares at him and then narrows her eyes. "What aren't you telling me?" Skye can tell he's hiding something and wants everything out in the open so she can think about this situation with clear eyes (she's still going to be pissed but she needs to learn the full truth).

He tries to stall for a few seconds before realizing that he can't get out of this. Might as well get the yelling out of the way now. "I need you to show up at the prison and talk Ward into this. We can use his feelings for you to our advantage."

Skye's mouth drops open. "What."

"I know you don't want to see or talk to him but you're our best bet. And you can ignore him once he's on the Bus since we'll keep Ward in an interrogation room on the Bus or a cell here." He knows this plan could fail but he's willing to do anything at this point.

She responds by turning around and walking out of the office (she'll get an earful for that later but is too furious to care at the moment) then proceeds to head down to her room. As soon as Skye closes the door behind her, she lies down on her bed and stares at the ceiling. She wants to punch something but doesn't feel like leaving this room. And thinking of the punching bag just reminds her of training sessions with Ward, something that stirs her fury even more. How can Coulson even think that she can do this (she knows why)? Skye sighs and prepares herself to go after Creel, the Absorbing Man. He needs taken out and she is ready to do so. Plus, maybe she can let go of some of her anger during this job (yeah right). So she turns on her side and rolls out of bed before standing up. "Time to take down a bad guy," she murmurs before changing clothes and heading to the armory to find her favorite weapon.

Coulson does a double take – as always when he sees it – but May says nothing. "Are you sure that's a good fit? I don't want you to hurt yourself, Skye."

"I can handle it just fine," she snaps. Skye is sick of people thinking she's vulnerable and delicate – she is a grown woman who knows what she's doing and she is an agent just like the rest of them. She doesn't need to prove herself because she is capable of doing what needs to be done (it's why she's prepared to face Ward after not seeing him for months even though she still doesn't want to).

"I know you can but I'm worried about you – about all of us," Coulson explains. He's worried this mask she's put on will crumble sooner or later and the aftermath will be brutal (but it's going to be brutal no matter what, so why is he this worried?) for her. May is supportive and helpful but no one is emotionally stable enough to deal with everything they've been experiencing since Hydra rose from the shadows.

Her gaze softens. "I'm okay, Coulson. You don't need to ask me how I am every ten minutes. Right, May?" She turns to the woman who is rapidly becoming the mother figure she never had.

May startles but recovers quickly. "Right," she confirms before looking around the room. "Where is everyone else?"

"Jemma's in the lab and Trip and Hunter are sparring with each other again." Coulson rolls his eyes because that's nothing new and he wishes they wouldn't try to go for their weak spots. He doesn't want to break up another (fun) fight between them again.

Skye scoffs. "This is going to end in disaster again so you better hope those two don't break something. Yet again." And they couldn't afford to replace anything so they had lost quite a few essentials (both Lance and Trip apologized but continued on).

"You know they will so why even bother saying something about it?" May briefly smiled however, and the three of them headed outside to the van (after calling Trip to meet them).

Going after Creel means Skye can focus on him and not other topics she doesn't want to think about just yet. She aims her big gun and seizes the anger that's become a lifeline to her ever since her life completely fell apart right in front of her all those months ago. But as usual, not everything goes according to plan and they have to run for their lives so none of them end up hurt.

Facing Ward just a little while later – and convincing him of their plan – is one of the hardest and most painful experiences of Skye's life but she uses her rage as a weapon to protect herself. It isn't until after Ward's locked up in the interrogation room that Skye allows herself to finally break apart and sob in May's arms.


End file.
